Wives join former NFL players in concussion suit

Associated PressPhiladelphia Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson (10) is helped off the field after an injury during an NFL football game. Jackson, a current NFL player, is not part of the class action law suit.

Jeff BlumenthalSporting News

Three former Philadelphia Eagles are among the plaintiffs in a class action lawsuit filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia against the National Football League, charging that the NFL and other defendants did not properly inform players about the risks of concussions.

Also named in the complaints were the wives of several players.

The named plaintiffs include former Eagles Ron Solt, Joe Panos and Rich Miano in the suit filed on their behalf by The Locks Firm. The lawyers, Gene Locks, Michael Leh, and David Langfitt, said the suit was filed against the NFL on behalf of all former NFL players, including seven named players and four spouses, all of whom are the class representatives.

According to a press release issued Thursday morning, the suit charges that the NFL and other defendants “intentionally and fraudulently misrepresented and/or concealed medical evidence about the short- and long-term risks regarding repetitive traumatic brain injury and concussions and failed to warn players that they risked permanent brain damage if they returned to play too soon after sustaining a concussion.”

In one statement related to the lawsuits, the league has said, “Any allegation that the NFL intentionally sought to mislead players has no merit” and “stands in contrast to the league’s actions to better protect players and advance the science and medical understanding of the management and treatment of concussions.”

Solt, 49, was an All-Pro guard for the Indianapolis Colts before being traded to the Eagles in 1988 for a first-round draft choice. He played in the league from 1984 to 1993 and the lawsuit said he had at least one concussion during an NFL game while with the Eagles, as well as multiple head traumas and concussions during practice that were never medically diagnosed. He now suffers from substantial memory loss and persistent ringing in his ears.

Panos, 41, was an offensive lineman in the NFL from 1994 to 2000 and was with the Eagles from 1994 to 1997. The lawsuit said he sustained concussions while with the Eagles and Buffalo Bills. He currently experiences headaches, memory loss, irritability, rage, mood swings, and, sleeplessness.

Miano, 49, played as a safety for 10 seasons in the NFL between 1985 and 1995 and was with the Eagles from 1991 to 1994. He is now associate head coach of the University of Hawaii football team. He sustained at least one concussion while playing but is currently asymptomatic.

The other former NFL players named in the suit include offensive linemen, Gennaro DiNapoli, 36, and Adam Haayer, 34, Daniel Buenning, 30, and Craig Heimburger, 34. The players claim to suffer from a variety of symptoms including severe depression, memory loss, headaches, anxiety, dizziness, trouble with concentration, short attention span, and mood swings.

The wives in the lawsuit include Lori Miano, Summer Haayer, Ashley Buenning, and Dawn Heimburger.

“This action is necessary because the NFL knew about the debilitating and permanent effects of head injuries and concussions that regularly occur among professional players, yet ignored and actively concealed the risks,” Locks said.

The suit says the NFL voluntarily joined the scientific research as well as public and private discussions regarding the relationship between concussions and brain impairment when it created the Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (MTBI) Committee in 1994.

Rather than naming a noted neurologist to chair this committee, the suit said the league appointed Dr. Elliott Pellman, a rheumatologist and physician and trainer for the New York Jets. The suit claims this was a conflict of interest, and that Pellman was not qualified because his training was in the treatment of joints and muscles, not head injuries.

The lawsuit claims while the committee was established with the stated purpose of researching and lessening the impact of concussions on NFL players, it failed to inform them of the true risks associated with head trauma.

“Although athletes who suffered brain trauma in other professional sports were restricted from playing full games or even seasons, NFL players with similar head injuries were regularly returned to play with devastating consequences,” Locks said.

The suit seeks medical monitoring, compensation, and financial recovery for the short-term, long-term, and chronic injuries, financial and intangible losses, and expenses for the individual former and present NFL players and their spouses.

-- Jeff Blumenthal is a reporter for the Philadelphia Business Journal, a sister publication of Sporting News

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